NBA Playoffs: Why the Offense of the Boston Celtics Is so Dangerous
With the Boston Celtics, you know what you are going to get on the defensive end: suffocating and unrelenting pressure in the half court for 48 minutes. Scoring over 90 points on the Celtics’ vaunted defense has been nearly impossible this postseason. Teams can expect great defense from this Celtics team.
However, the Celtics offense is a bit more of a wild card, and that is why it is so dangerous. Forrest Gump’s mom used to say that “life was like a box of chocolates. You never know what you’re gonna get”. Well, the Celtics offense is also like a box of chocolates, you never know who is going to step up.
Last night it was Brandon Bass who stepped up for the Celtics and led them to victory with a career playoff high 27 points. The past three wins before Game 5, it was Kevin Garnett who put the team on his back.
In Game 3 against the Hawks, Rondo led the way for the Celtics with a dominating triple double performance. And it was Paul Pierce’s efforts that most helped the Celtics win Game 2 and Game 4 against the Hawks.
That is four different players leading the Celtics to seven postseason wins. The best part though is that there are more players who could potentially win games for the Celtics in the future. Ray Allen has yet to explode for a vintage Ray playoff performance, but there is certainly one coming.
Even Avery Bradley is capable of scoring close to 20 points. Reserve swing-man Mickael Pietrus could also be a game-changer for the C’s. Heck, Greg Stiemsma scored ten points on 5-5 shooting in just 14 minutes last night.
You put all of this together and you have one dangerous team. Every player on the floor for the Celtics is a legitimate threat, making the Celtics a tough opponent for any team. Teams cannot focus in on one player because it is impossible to know who is going to step up for the Celtics on any given night.
Brandon Bass was able to get a lot of his points because the Sixers were worried about the other players on the court. Several times, Rondo or Garnett would draw a few defenders, then kick the ball out to Bass for a wide open jump shot.
That is what makes this team so dangerous on the offensive end. On the surface, Boston’s offense is mediocre at best, but really, it is as dangerous as any because it is nearly impossible to scheme against.
Teams can’t key in on a single player because every player is equally capable of scoring in big numbers. And even if a team focuses on shutting down just one player, the other four players on the court for the Celtics will be able to score more easily.
Some great defenses can shut down a couple good players, but no defense, no matter how great, can contain five legitimate scoring threats for an entire game and for that reason, the Celtics have an excellent chance at raising Banner 18.
